Israel-Hamas conflict continues as death toll nears 1,000: What we know on Day 2

In backdrop of the United States, Germany, and other western powers expressing their support for the Israeli people, the scale of upheaval on both sides has prompted fears of a wider conflict unravelling between Israel and it's opposing factions.

By: Express Web Desk

Updated: October 8, 2023 09:22 PM IST

3 min read

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Israeli police check the damage from a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip in Tel Aviv. (AP)

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Israel and the Gaza strip have been reeling under incessant strikes after militant group Hamas launched the biggest attack on the Jewish state in decades. Hundreds have died on both sides as Israeli soldiers battled Hamas fighters in the streets of southern Israel on Sunday and launched retaliation strikes that levelled buildings in Gaza.

As the battle continued for a second day, this is an overview of what happened on Sunday:

📌 What is the death toll so far? Several Israeli media outlets reported that the death toll from Hamas’ attack on Israel had risen to 600, and as per Palestine’s health ministry, at least 370 Palestinians lost their lives so far in retaliatory air strikes by Israel, taking the cumulative loss of lives close to a 1,000.

Meanwhile, at least 2,000 people were left wounded amid the escalation of tensions between Israel and Palestine.

📌 What is happening at the Israel-Lebanon border? Tensions also spiraled at the Israel-Lebanon border, as both countries exchanged artillery and rocket fire. The Israeli military said one of its drones struck a Hezbollah post in the Har Dov, an area in Shebaa on the border.

Members of the Lebanese army stand near military vehicles in Kfar Kila village as pictured from Khiam, near the border with Israel, in southern Lebanon October 7, 2023. (Reuters)

This came after Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a rocket and artillery attack on the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms and said that it was “in solidarity” with the Palestinian people.

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📌 What has Lebanon said? Senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine even said his group’s “guns and rockets” were with Palestinian militants. “Our history, our guns and our rockets are with you. We are all with you,” Safieddine said at an event in the Hezbollah stronghold of Dahieh on Beirut’s outskirts in solidarity with the Palestinian fighters.

📌 So where does the situation stand currently? Israeli bombardments are ongoing in several areas around the Gaza Strip, with the Israel Defense Forces still hitting terrorist targets in Gaza. The Israeli Defense Force on Sunday said that had “struck 10 Hamas targets, among them, Hamas’ intelligence headquarters and a military compound used by Hamas’ aerial forces.”

People stand outside a mosque destroyed in an Israeli air strike in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Sunday. (AP Photo)

📌 And what has the Israeli government said? The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that his Security Cabinet declared the country at war following the Hamas incursion on Saturday. The decision, announced on Sunday, formally authorizes “the taking of significant military steps,” it said it a statement.

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